The present invention relates to an article of furniture in general, and more particularly to an adjustable article of furniture, such as an adjustable bed.
There are already known various constructions of adjustable beds and the like, among them those in which the shifting of the center of gravity of the user results in an adjustment of the position of the various components of the adjustable bed relative to one another. Such beds, while also suited for other purposes, have found their most widespread use in hospitals as hospital beds, or elsewhere for therapeutic purposes and in the care for chronically ill persons. The adjustment of the positions of the components relative to one another is attended to for supporting the patient or other user in a multitude of different positions.
The conventional beds of this type include at least a backrest which is adjustable relative to the remainder of the bed between a substantially horizontal rest position and a partly inclined or even upright position. It is also known to make the legrest a separate component of the bed, which then can be adjusted in its position relative to the seat portion of the bed. All of these conventional beds are further developments of the basic concept which is disclosed in the German Pat. No. 293,818. The backrest of the bed is pivotable on the frame of the bed about a pivoting axis which is located within the backrest, that is offset from the connection of the backrest to the remainder of the bed. A reason for this offset arrangement of the pivoting axis is that it is desired that the seat portion of the bed be inclined downwardly toward the point of its joinder with the backrest as the latter is being pivoted toward its upright position.
When the bed of the prior art is constructed in accordance with this principle of construction, it is, of necessity, relatively complex and expensive. In addition thereto, the user of the bed must exert a substantial force on the various components of the bed when the bed is to be adjusted, at least during the adjustment of the bed in one direction. This is very disadvantageous, particularly since the person who uses the bed is usually a patient who does not possess the muscular strength necessary for adjusting the position of the adjustable bed.